How does this sound?

It sounds pretty freaking cool.

Sorry if that reply isn't really helpfull. Consider it code for "I am watching this hack with interest and excitement! Keep it up!"

The first game I ever played, I was a Gunlugger with the move that let me roll Hard to Act Under Fire. I also had Fuck This Shit (Only used it once or twice though) I had Hard highlighted in pretty much every session (the player doing my highlighting was using my character as musle, so it was beneficial for both of us). I usually advanced about one and a half times per session we played (probably about 3-4 hours on IRC with 4 PCs, although one wasn't particularly active). I pretty quickly got a move or two ahead of the other PCs and stayed there (maybe even three moves ahead eventually). Eventually, I pretty much ran out of advancement options, so I started playing a new character.

He was a Brainer who used Wierd to Go Aggro and to Act Under fire (Also he used In Brain Puppet Strings a lot). Again, his Wierd was highlighted 90% of the time and I advanced like crazy.

Our game never broke or became unfun. It ended because the hardhold I had taken over was burnt to the ground in a war with the mutants, not because we ran out of advancements or anything. (I never retired my character to safety because him being in danger was fun and a driving focus of play.)

I've played with a different group where advancement was much slower and less "powergaming" focused. Both games played out pretty similarly as far as I can tell.

Is there anything specific you want to know?

Custom Move: When (insert Brainer name here) has time and intimacy with you, they can put a command in your head, and hold 3, under the same conditions as in-brain puppet strings. Or they can ask you 3 questions off the Deep Brain Scan list.

If they're wearing a violation glove, merest skin contact counts as time and intimacy. If they use the implant syringe or receptivity drugs, modify the "moves" appropriately.

Ta da! NPC brainers.

(If you want to be nice, you could hack up a roll to resist, maybe cool or weird? On a 10+, they take 1 harm, on a 7-9, it's just one hold, on a miss, 3 hold. Just invert the brainer move, basically. It's a trick that's worked for me before on other moves.)

Yeah, I did this when I wanted an NPC brainer in my game. I believe the way I wrote it up was "When you try to resist a command that Rothschild put in your head with time and intimacy, roll+weird. On a 10+ you resist, on a 7-9 you either resist and take 2 harm (ap) or you obey. On a miss you either obey or take 4 harm (ap) from a messy brain hemmorage."

You know, just to keep it focused on the players.

It only ever got used once, but the player (angel) it was used on decided to murder his employer (who had showed up to rescue him from Rothschild)  under the cover of treating his wounds instead of taking 2 harm.

I suppose, to be fair, he was already pretty hurting from all the torturing Rothschild had done.

• Vassal (or the heir?) - Chopper

I believe the term the books use for "A guy with a pack of knights in service of a lord" is "bannerman."
I'll also second a desire for a "Spider" playbook.